Netflix draws attention after actor Cho Jin-woong edited out of promotional video
Published: 02 Mar. 2026, 12:35
![Poster for the film “Assassination” (2015) shows actors Cho Jin-woong, left, Jun Ji-hyun, center, and Choi Duk-mun [SHOWBOX]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/03/02/cee9e9c7-29f8-4fb3-8377-5f57a3d24fdf.jpg)
Poster for the film “Assassination” (2015) shows actors Cho Jin-woong, left, Jun Ji-hyun, center, and Choi Duk-mun [SHOWBOX]
A video Netflix Korea posted for March 1 Independence Movement Day is drawing attention after actor Cho Jin-woong appears to have been edited out of a scene from the film “Assassination” (2015).
Netflix Korea posted a compilation video on its official social media accounts with the message, “Because they were there, we live in today’s spring,” on Sunday.
The video stitches together scenes from five Korean films and dramas about the independence movement, including “Gyeongseong Creature” (2023-24), “Assassination,” “Song of the Bandits” (2023), “Harbin” (2024) and “A Resistance” (2019), focusing on moments in which characters shout, “Long live Korean independence!”
Viewers noted that Cho was the only main cast member missing from the “Assassination” segment. In the clip, Jun Ji-hyun and Choi Duk-mun stand in front of a Korean flag and shout, “Long live Korean independence!” But the scene with Cho, who originally stands next to Jun, is edited so that only part of his shoulder is visible.
Cho played Chu Sang-ock, nicknamed “Big Gun,” one of the three-member independence fighter team in “Assassination.”
![A Netflix video clip from the film “Assassination” (2015) shows Cho Jin-woong edited out. [NETFLIX]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/03/02/5480c083-3df8-49ee-8b1d-d5a7184194dc.jpg)
A Netflix video clip from the film “Assassination” (2015) shows Cho Jin-woong edited out. [NETFLIX]
After the film’s release, Cho also served as a promotional ambassador for the organization commemorating the Shinheung Military Academy. He joined a government delegation as a national special envoy during the repatriation of independence fighter Hong Beom-do’s remains in August 2021 and later narrated the documentary film “Independence Army: The Unfinished War,” which opened in August 2025.
Cho announced his retirement in December 2025 after past juvenile misconduct allegations surfaced. “I will suspend all activities and bring my acting career to an end,” Cho said.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY SHIN HYE-YEON [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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